Foreword | 1. Introduction | 2. Our court system | 3. Key participants for media in the court | 4. Media in court | 5. Courts with special media provisions | 6. Access to court information | 7. Courts with special rules concerning access to information | 8. Ministry of Justice media contacts | 9. References | 10. Appendices
The information detailed in this section is general and applies to all courts. However, the Supreme Court, Coroners Court, Waitangi Tribunal, Family Court and Youth Court have additional or special provisions regarding media which are detailed in section 5 of these guidelines.
If you are new to court reporting or to a particular court, it would be helpful if you are able to meet with the registrar or court manager to familiarise yourself with the court and its operation, at a time when the court is not in session.
Court staff will:
Court staff are unable to provide any comment or opinion on any court matter to the media.
When the court is sitting, the presiding judge holds the responsibility for the conduct of proceedings inside the courtroom.
Most courts have a seating area for the media, although in smaller courts this may be part of the public seating area.
As a media representative attending a criminal jurisdiction sitting of a District Court you have access to press sheets, which detail the name, address, date of birth and occupation of the accused, and the charges laid against them. A press sheet will not provide you with any information on suppression orders, which may be granted subsequently.
Press sheets are distributed to the media bench each morning before court commences or are available from court registry staff. They are collected and destroyed at the conclusion of court each day. Please do not remove your press sheet from the courtroom.
It is important to note that press sheets are only provided in relation to the first appearance of the accused and are not provided for any subsequent appearances.
Court lists detail the court’s schedule for the day, setting out the names of the people or parties appearing and the courtroom in which they will appear. They are posted in the waiting area of the court, or are available on request from court registry staff.
Court lists for the three higher courts, the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the High Court, are available on the Courts of New Zealand website www.courtsofnz.govt.nz.
Court lists are prepared as a guideline. Every endeavour is made to ensure these lists are accurate, but the details can change at short notice. You can check with the court registry staff if you need clarification of a change.
When in court, there are some basic courtesies to observe that will help ensure the court process is not interrupted or distracted.
- Please attend court suitably and professionally dressed.
- Where possible, sit in the area provided for the media.
- Turn off your cellphone or pager whenever you go into the court.
- You may not eat or drink in the courtroom.
- You must stand when a judge enters or leaves the court.
- If you wish to enter or leave a courtroom while a trial is in progress, please do so quietly.
- We recommend you don’t leave during a summing-up.
- Remain as quiet as possible in the courtroom.
Sometimes a judge might order that no one enter or leave the courtroom, to ensure quiet and focus. This might happen during the testimony of a particular witness or during an address by counsel, or when the judge is giving their decision.
If the judge addresses you during the court proceedings and you need to respond, you should stand and address the judge as Your Honour.
4.5 Filming, photographing and recording in court
If you want to record proceedings in court for broadcast on radio or television, or wish to photograph a court in session, you must apply to the registrar of the court concerned.
Whenever authority is granted to media to cover a trial, permission is given on the basis that the conditions imposed are minimum conditions. All matters relating to in-court media coverage are at the discretion of the court.
A media applicant and anybody acting on their behalf, such as journalists, camera operators, sound technicians, or photographers, must ensure that they follow the conditions imposed.
The In-Court Media Coverage Guidelines 2003 were issued by the judiciary to deal specifically with filming, photographing and recording of activity and proceedings in the Court of Appeal, High Court, District Court and Employment Court. These guidelines can be found in full in Appendix One on page 41.
The Supreme Court has issued its own media guidelines, which can be found in Appendix Two on page 53.
Making an application
If you want to film, photograph or record a trial, or part of a trial, you will need to apply to the court where the trial is to take place. There is a standard application form which is Schedule 1 of the In-Court Media Coverage Guidelines 2003 and can be found in Appendix 1 on page 41, and on the Ministry of Justice website www.justice.govt.nz.
Applications need to be lodged with the registrar of the court at least 10 working days before the start of the trial. If your application is lodged less than 10 working days before the start of the trial, you must explain why it is late and why the application should be granted despite this.
The registrar will refer your application to the counsel for the parties involved in the trial and any unrepresented parties, and then to the trial judge.
If the trial relates to a sexual offence, counsel for the Crown will provide a copy of your request to the complainant and obtain their views about your media coverage.
Response to an application
The parties who receive an application to film, photograph or record a trial must provide their response in writing to the registrar, the media applicant and the other parties within three working days.
If any party opposes the application, in whole or in part, they must include a reason for their opposition in their response.
If someone objects
If any party objects to your media coverage application, the judge will make the final decision.
The judge may decide to hold a hearing to consider any objections before declining or approving your application. If this is the case, you and your counsel or other representative may appear at the hearing.
Judicial decisions
Consent to film, photograph or record a trial is entirely at the judge’s discretion and may be issued with restrictions.
A judge may grant an application if all parties have advised their consent or non-opposition, or if the time for notifying any opposition has passed and no party has given notice of any opposition.
A judge may decline to consider an application if it is lodged less than 10 working days before the trial.
If permission is granted, you should follow the standard conditions for television coverage, photographing and radio coverage in Schedules 2, 3 and 4 of the In-Court Media Coverage Guidelines 2003, which can be found in Appendix One on page 41.
At any time a judge may revoke an authority to cover a trial if:
4.6 Other points to note when filming, photographing and recording in court
Sensitive cases
There are additional considerations and rules in relation to filming, photographing or recording court cases relating to sexual offences.
The Crown must notify the registrar of the complainant’s views about your media coverage application, and if the complainant opposes the application, the judge is likely to decline your application.
If the complainant supports the application but only on certain conditions, the judge will show special regard for their views and permission to cover the case may be subject to relevant restrictions.
Witness protection
In a criminal trial, witness protection from identification is normally available for any witness who seeks it. This does not apply to the accused or certain official witnesses.
Protection under this rule can be sought from the presiding judge at any time before the witness gives evidence.
Witness protection means the witness should not be recognisable if broadcast giving evidence. In the case of still photography, that witness should not be photographed while they are in court or giving evidence.
The judge may also rule that the witness may not be filmed, photographed or recorded by any person anywhere between the time of the protection ruling and the end of the trial.
Additional discretionary witness protection
All witnesses in criminal trials or hearings, including official witnesses and the accused, can apply for an additional level of protection.
Any witness, or party proposing to call that witness, may apply for a ruling that the witness not be filmed, photographed or recorded.
When additional witness protection is applied for, the applicant must notify all other parties, including any media who have been granted authority to cover the trial.
The judge will consider any application for additional discretionary witness protection, having regard for matters such as whether:
In a case where the judge has ruled that the witness must not be filmed at all, the television camera should be either removed from the court or turned away from the witness so that it is obvious to the witness that they are not being filmed.
The judge may impose additional conditions at any time.
Name or detail suppression
In accordance with the Criminal Justice Act 1985, a judge may make a suppression order prohibiting the publication of names, particulars or evidence of a person involved in a criminal case.
Some names are automatically suppressed, even without a judge’s order – such as for witnesses under 17, victims of sexual offences and persons accused of incest.
If a person has been granted name suppression, the law says that you may not publish, show or repeat their name or any particulars about that person which could lead to their identification. In some cases there may also be other details suppressed.
You can check with the registrar if you are unsure whether suppression was granted in respect of any details of a case.
Each case will be different and your media organisation is advised to seek legal advice if any doubt exists.
There are penalties available to the court if a suppression order is broken.
Jurors and juries
In a trial by jury, jurors should not be filmed, photographed or otherwise identified, and no broadcast or photograph published may show the jury or any member of it.
In addition, they should not be interviewed and no comment offered by a juror or jury may be reported.
Recording equipment
Where an application has been approved for media to record or film a trial, you must provide all your own recording equipment.
Court audio and visual equipment is specifically set up to conduct the business of the court and cannot be used by media.
Courtroom sketches
The same approvals are necessary for sketching a courtroom scene as for photographing in court, and you should use the application form included as Schedule 1 of the In-Court Media Coverage Guidelines 2003 in Appendix One on page 41.
Outside the courthouse
If you are filming or taking photographs outside the courthouse you should be aware of any people included in your footage. If you film someone entering or leaving the courthouse you will need to check that there is no suppression order in place, prior to the broadcast or publication of those images.
If there is a suppression order you should ensure that any images that are broadcast or published are treated in a manner that does not contravene the terms of the suppression order.
Note: Section 140 of the Criminal Justice Act 1985 provides that it is an offence not just to publish a suppressed name, but to evade or attempt to evade the order.
4.7 Filming and photographing in and around the court for other purposes
Requests are sometimes made to use court facilities to film documentaries and movies.
In these instances you should prepare a proposal for the court manager, advising what you would like to film, when filming would take place and the purpose of the filming.
The court manager will consider your proposal, taking into account various factors including the availability of the facilities and any security concerns.
The court manager will work with you on the logistics of filming if your proposal is approved.